The rumour that I had obtained my degree from a diploma mill
is maliciously (and libellously) false.

It is also very old hat. It is based on Wikipedia, the
"encyclopaedia" that anyone can edit and which I nearly sued a few
years ago (regarding an unrelated issue). In retaliation, Wikipedians (as
members of this cult are known) started to disseminate (anonymously) libellous
titbits about me:

I studied in 1982-3 in ENCINO, California. At that time, there was a university
there called "Pacific" (yes, replete with a campus with very real
students, faculty, exams, and all the paraphernalia of higher education.)

Later, to distinguish itself from other Pacific universities, it added the
moniker "Western". It is now called California
Miramar University and is fully accredited..

I have never been to Hawaii, let alone studied there. The diploma mill that
used to call itself "Pacific Western University" (and then was
litigated into changing its name) was based in Honolulu.

In April 1997, I uploaded to the Web a free Internet edition
of my book "Malignant Self-love: Narcissism Revisited",
written in 1995. It is still available here: http://www.narcissistic-abuse.com.
It was the first website ever about narcissism.

It generated an outpouring of anguish and relief from both
narcissists and victims of abuse, who now could put a label to their misery and
suffering. Thus, we followed up with the first print edition of the book in
1999.

At the time, with the exception of a handful of scholars, no
one had even heard of pathological narcissism. I had to come up with a whole
new vocabulary to describe the pernicious disorder and its insidious effects. I
coined phrases such as somatic and cerebral narcissist, narcissistic abuse, no
contact, devalued and discarded, cold empathy, and dozens of others. Sometimes,
I had to imbue moribund phrases from the 1930s and 1970s with new meaning:
Narcissistic Supply and False Self are two examples of many.

20 years later, narcissism is a cultural meme, a buzzword,
and a leading topic of study in academe. Yet, it is precisely this popularity
that threatens to obscure the true nature of Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

I was also the first to introduce pathological narcissism
into the terms of the political debate with my July 2008 essay where I
suggested that Obama may
be a narcissist.

To reiterate:

My NPD (Narcissistic
Personality Disorder) Website and forums were the first ever
on the Internet. My book was written in 1995-6 and the entire text was posted
online in 1997.

I was the one who popularized the
issue of narcissistic abuse (a term I coined) online and in print. I also
established and moderated the first support groups online for victims and
survivors in 1999. The very language used today to describe the experiences of
victims of narcissists and psychopaths ("no contact",
"narcissistic supply", “devalue and discard”, “somatic vs. cerebral
narcissist”, “cold empathy”, and so on) was invented, infused with new meaning,
or popularized by me in the mid-1990s.

My books are based on the latest research in the
field and on scholarly works by the leading experts on personality disorders.
Many of the chapters contain detailed bibliographies.

My book - Malignant Self-love: Narcissism Revisited (now in
its tenth, revised, impression) and the content of my Web siteare based on
correspondence since 1996 with hundreds of people suffering from the
Narcissistic Personality Disorder (narcissists) and with thousands of their family
members, friends, therapists, and colleagues.

I, myself, have been diagnosed with the disorder (twice) and
spent time in therapy and almost a decade discussing it in depth (mainly
through correspondence) with mental health professionals the world over.

My online mailing lists alone sport well over 26,000 members -
of which 1000 are therapists, social workers, psychiatrists and
psychologists - for example here:

But I am certified by Brainbench in
Counselling Techniques (with a very high mark).

Brainbench are an online certification agency. Anyone and
everyone can access their Web site and take their tests. BUT, the tests are
very difficult, time limited, and you still have to PASS the tests to get a
certificate! And they have a very
impressive roster of clients.

"By partnering with Brainbench, 6 million members have advanced
their skills and their careers, and over 4,000 businesses have found better
ways to screen and select candidates, track and develop employee skills, and
differentiate employees to current and prospective clients.

Corporate clients include numerous members of the Fortune 500,
various U.S. Government agencies, and several universities and colleges.

Brainbench is ISO 9001:2000 certified! We are the first online
testing company to obtain this accomplishment for its test development
process."

As I said, I am the author of "Malignant
Self-love: Narcissism Revisited". The media and many mental health
professionals seem to think that my work makes me an authority on narcissism.

Ian Walker, the hostile and envious director of “I, Psychopath” paid me to
participate in the film. I understood from him that I had to act the part of a
rabid, stereotypical psychopath, which I did.

I scored 18 in the PCL-R test
administered in the film. This is a high score, but the cut-off point for
psychopaths is 30. I definitely have antisocial tendencies
– but I am not a
psychopath.

The concluding scene in the film in which I “admit” that my doctorate hails
from a diploma mill is the result of manipulative editing of the raw footage.
View the segment carefully: I actually insist there that my
doctorate is genuine, that I had to defend it and that it was granted to me
by a bona fide university, replete with a campus and in situ classes. (Click here to view photo of my diploma.)
In response to Walker’s prompting, I explained to him the differences between
diploma mills and my university. My description of a typical diploma mill was
taken out of context to imply that I have purchased my doctorate from one
(which I emphatically did not!): hence the “incriminating” sentences in the
film’s last three minutes.

"Vaknin's depth and breadth are unmatched anywhere
else and by anyone else.

He knows everything there is to know about narcissistic and
psychopathic abusers and how to cope with them effectively."

(Yomtov Barak,
family therapist)
"I was stimulated just as I was challenged and enlightened."

(Robert L.
Mueller, author of 'Bullying Bosses')

"The only source of such vast, serious, elaborated
and thorough first-hand information about Narcissism available.

Useful for victims as well as therapists."

(Dr. Nili Raam,
author)
'Provides the partners, family and friends of NPD sufferers, and the sufferers
themselves,

with deep insight into the numerous expressions of this
devastating and often insidious disorder."

(Esther
Veltheim, author of 'Beyond Concepts')

"One powerful healing tool in our therapy with
these people is Dr. Vaknin's book.

The most accurate portrayal of the 'typical' cult leader we
have ever seen."

(Robert Pardon,
Director of MeadowHaven)
"A must read for psychologists, social workers, and all individuals who
want to learn how to deal with the narcissists in their lives."

(Laurie
Anthony, teacher and author)
"Required reading for any codependent - to understand how the other side
works."

(Dr. Irene,
psychologist and Webmistress of drirene.com)
"If you wish to get under the skin of a Narcissist, if you wish to get to
know how he thinks and feels and why he behaves as he does, then this is the
book for you."

(Dr. Anthony
Benis, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, and author "Towards Self and Sanity
- On the Genetic Origins of the Human Character")

I am looking for a dissertation that was registered with your service in
the early 1980's. The Author is Sam Vaknin, and the title of the
dissertation is "Time Asymmetry Re-Visited" , I did not have any luck
finding it with your search engine. I am reasonably sure that it is
registered with your service, as the author himself has directed me here
for a copy.

Thank you for your time,
Dawn Perri

Thank you for your recent inquiry. The dissertation(s) or thesis(es) you
requested is/are available from UMI. To order by phone please call
1-800-521-3042. If you wish to pay by check or money order, please mail
your request to the address listed below. Copies can also be orderedover
the Internet at http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway.
Please feel
free to contact a UMI representative if you require further assistance.

A bit of factual evidence on Sam Vaknin's doctorate that, perhaps,
takes us a little more out of the subjective realm:

While I am certainly no authority on "diploma mills" and the like,
but I have never heard of one that would have required or accepted
a 225 page Doctoral Thesis. Even more suprising would be accepted
theses of such institutions by Uniersity Microfilms Interenational
of Ann Arbor, Michigan, pretty much the world thesis authority and
then accepted by the Library of Congress, whose entry follows: